


Suwako Goes To Woodstock

by GooeyHeat



Category: Touhou Project
Genre: Drug Use, F/F, Gen, Pre-Canon, Recreational Drug Use, Woodstock
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-05-05
Updated: 2020-05-05
Packaged: 2021-03-02 20:54:48
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,209
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24013177
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/GooeyHeat/pseuds/GooeyHeat
Summary: Suwako takes a trip to Bethel, New York in the summer of 1969 for her own reasons.
Relationships: Moriya Suwako/Yasaka Kanako
Comments: 6
Kudos: 23





	Suwako Goes To Woodstock

August 1969

"...Woodstock?"

Two gods sat in front of the old Moriya Shrine. Kanako Yasaka, the wind god, looked down with a questioning expression at the earth god, Suwako Moriya.

"It's a music festival being held over in America in a few days," Suwako explained. "I feel like it might be a great place to gather faith."

Kanako sighed. "I don't understand how you'll gather faith ten thousand kilometers across an ocean when the people there couldn't possibly become worshipers... but I do know that I certainly can't stop you from doing anything like this."

"Damn right you can't, babe," Suwako said with a wink. "I'm guessing this means you're not coming?"

Kanako shook her head. "We haven't had a miko here in a while, and I can't leave the shrine entirely unattended. So as lovely as a vacation with you sounds, dear, I'm afraid I must decline."

Suwako pouted and stamped her foot. "It's not a vacation! It's important work!" Her face transformed into a mischievous grin. "Well, it's also a vacation."

Kanako stood up and smiled back. "I knew it. Well, you said the festival's tomorrow, right?"

"More or less, taking time zones into account. I'm just about ready to leave; I wanna get there a bit early to scout things out. The crowds might be big, and you know I'm not all that tall..."

"...and I'm guessing you're trying to blend in with the humans, so you won't be standing on a giant leaf," Kanako remarked with a wink.

Suwako put her hands on her hips. "How is that still funny to you after all these years?"

"More 'cute' than 'funny', dear," Kanako replied, before leaning down to kiss Suwako on the cheek. "Anyway, enjoy your trip, and let me know if you find anything that will help us. You know business has been slowing down, bit by bit."

"Yeah..." Suwako trailed off, leaving the two to stand in silence for a moment, aware of a predicament that had been building over the past few decades. Then, Suwako smiled. "Welp, I'm off! I love you!" she said, as she dove into the dirt below her. An "I love you too," followed behind her as she burrowed into the ground the way only an earth goddess could.

A few hours later, the goddess popped out of the mud in the middle of the woods of upstate New York. It was early in the morning the day before the festival, and as she moved towards the edge of the trees towards the farm where the concert was to be held, she could see the stage set up in the middle of the valley. She looked up at the cloudy sky.

"Hm, sky's kinda gray today. Hopefully this whole thing doesn't get rained out," Suwako said to herself. She took a deep breath, taking in the warm air and feeling the life in the ground below her. "Can't remember the last time I've been in American soil. Feels pretty different from home, at any rate." She stretched a little. "Anyway, there are some... supplies I better pick up before tomorrow," she muttered, before disappearing back into the woods.

"Holy shit!"

Suwako emerged from the woods surrounding the farm the next day to see the valley filled with a massive crowd, and one that was still growing, way beyond what anyone had predicted. "I gotta get a better look at this!" Suwako said, taking to the skies.

In the air, Suwako observed the crazy situation, as more and more people streamed into the valley and surrounded the stage. The roads leading to the farm were backed up for miles and miles, and Suwako could see people simply leaving their cars parked on the roads and walking the remainder of the distance.

"This is crazy," she said to herself. "On the upside, I shouldn't have any problem blending into the crowd so I can sneak in without a ticket," she chuckled. She flew back down towards the woods and dove into the dirt once again. Carefully, she began moving under the ground, sensing the presence of the many humans above, looking for a space where she could pop out of the ground without being noticed. Eventually, she found an open spot just beyond the main crowd and emerged. She took off her hat and gave it a look. "You're gonna have to pretend to be a normal hat for the weekend," she whispered, and the two eyes on top of her hat vanished, leaving it a plain, tan hat. Satisfied, she returned the hat to her head and laid down a small blanket in a space between some tents. It was already past time for the concert to start, but it seemed like there was trouble getting performers to the stage due to the crowds, so things were delayed. Suwako laid on her back, put her hands behind her head, and enjoyed the atmosphere.

After nearly three hours, the performance finally started. Off in the distance, a man played an acoustic guitar and sang with passion. Suwako let the music and the sound of the crowd wash over her, practically entranced, until she was interrupted by a voice.

"Hello there, dearie, would you mind if I set up a blanket next to yours?"

Suwako looked up. Above her stood a tall woman with long brown hair and round glasses. "Go ahead," Suwako said.

"Lovely." The lady rolled out a blanket with a leaf pattern on it and took a seat. "Enjoying the music?"

"Sure am," Suwako said, closing her eyes again. "I live for this kinda thing."

"It's quite nice, I agree. Though apparently the current performer wasn't supposed to be the opening act; it seems they're having so much trouble getting the bands with more equipment to the stage."

"Are you surprised? This crowd is out of this world."

The woman chuckled. "No, I suppose not."

The two fell into silence again, until Suwako just happened to open her eyes and look to her side, where she saw the mysterious woman looking at her with a mischievous smile. "See something you like, lady?" Suwako said.

"Oh, I'm simply surprised," the woman said. "After all, I didn't expect to run into a god out here."

Suwako froze for a second, and then started laughing. "You've got a good eye, lady! ...Pretty good for a bake-danuki, anyway," she said with a smirk.

"Ho ho, I thought you'd never notice. Mamizou Futatsuiwa of Sado, at your service," the woman smiled.

"Oh hey, you're from Japan too. I'm Suwako Moriya, one of the gods of the Moriya Shrine out in Suwa. Nice to meet ya."

Mamizou chuckled. "The pleasure's mine." After listening to a bit more music, she spoke again. "So what brings a god from the mountains of Japan all the way out here to a music festival in the middle of nowhere, New York?"

Suwako sat up and spread her arms. "Faith, of course!"

Mamizou looked puzzled. "Faith? Here? But there's no way any of these folks will end up becoming your worshipers... not to mention that the leading religions in this country are all monotheistic, and atheism is becoming more and more popular as well."

"Y'know, my wife said the same thing," Suwako smirked. "But what both you and her don't realize is that faith isn't just about organized worship."

Mamizou tilted her head. "I'm not sure I understand."

"Look at this crowd, Mamizou. Thousands and thousands of people, here for an event billed as three days of peace, love, and music. Now, I may be god of the earth, but that doesn't mean I live under a rock. There's some bad stuff going on. There's wars, there's fear, there's hatred, there's bigotry. The way I see it, people need something to believe in. In the old days, that would be a god, but here and now? It's a gathering like this. A belief that thousands of humans can come together to make things better without hurting anybody. In the end, beliefs like that are faith too. And just being around it fills me with energy, just like actual worship."

Mamizou nodded thoughtfully. "I see, I see. I guess I learned something new today. Still, this seems like a long trip to make just for a boost of faith. Why go to all the trouble?"

Suwako's smile vanished, and she looked down. "Our shrine isn't doing so well these days. We don't get many worshipers, even on big holidays, and my descendants aren't even willing to become shrine maidens anymore. Honestly... we're struggling. So stuff like this... it helps keep us alive."

"I see, I see." The two sat in silence for a bit longer, as the man on stage sang about freedom. "You know, Suwako... you're hardly the only ones going through this."

"Yeah?"

"It's starting to become a common problem among gods and youkai alike. Us bake-danuki haven't had too much trouble, since our myths are unusually strong, but a lot of others have been in danger of fading away."

Suwako sighed. "I wish there were another way."

Mamizou smiled. "Well, that's what I was getting to."

Suwako looked at her. "What do ya mean?"

"There's a place in Japan, hidden in the countryside. It's separated from the rest of the country by a supernatural border, and within it, gods and youkai that otherwise would've been forgotten live free and full of life. An old friend of mine told me about it. It was made by a youkai I'd never heard of before; I believe she's called Yukari Yakumo?"

Suwako shook her head. "Doesn't ring a bell."

"Same here, and I like to think I know of most of the powerful youkai from throughout the ages. Anyway, it's a land called Gensokyo. If you're willing to leave the rest of the world behind, you could thrive there."

"Huh, maybe that is a good idea. I'll talk to Kanako about it when I get home."

Mamizou smiled. "The wife, I presume?"

"Yup! Met when she tried to kill me. Was love at first stab!"

"Oh ho ho, truly a love story for the ages! Anyway, now for the important question..." Mamizou reached into a pouch and pulled out a small bag with ground-up green leaves in it and a long pipe. "Would you like some weed, dearie? I've got plenty."

Suwako snorted. "From a tanuki? Hell no. I'd probably end up smoking ground-up maple leaves or something. I've got my own."

Mamizou put a hand to her chest and put on a comically shocked expression. "Oh, I'm insulted! It was oregano."

"Hah! Knew it was a trick." Suwako pulled out her own paper and weed and rolled it up. After lighting it up, she turned to Mamizou, who had just lit her pipe. "To peace, love, and music!"

"To peace, love, and music," Mamizou replied.

And so, the two began to enjoy the festival proper.

35 Years Later

Kanako pinched the bridge of her nose between two fingers. "So, you mean to tell me that you had a solution to our faith problem practically dropped into your lap, and you just... forgot?"

"Yup," said Suwako.

"You just forgot... for THIRTY-FIVE YEARS?"

"Yup," said Suwako.

"I... I just-" Kanako took a breath. "How do you forget something so important to our future, our CONTINUED SURVIVAL?"

"I did some wild shit at that festival, Kanako. I don't think I've gotten that fucking blasted since."

"Why do I even bother." Kanako sighed again. "Clearly, this move is the best idea to keep us alive, but... this really would've been so much easier back then. After all..."

"Easier how?" Suwako asked.

"Back then... we didn't have Sanae."

"...Right."

Kanako looked serious. "I don't want to leave her... she's basically our daughter at this point. But... can we really tell her to give up her current life for the shrine's sake? For our sake?"

Suwako shrugged. "Why not just ask her?"

Kanako looked away. "You know I couldn't do that."

"Why not? She's not quite all grown up yet, but she's getting old enough that she has to make decisions about her future. She's starting high school in the fall, and she'll have to start thinking about college. Might as well offer this up as another option for the future."

"Suwako..."

"Sanae's a strong girl, Kanako. I know you worry about her, but she's going to have to make her own decisions, too. And she can do it. I know she can. And deep down, I know you know she can, too." With that, Suwako walked up to Kanako and hugged her. "She'll be okay. We'll all be okay."

They held each other for a few long seconds. After they moved apart, Kanako nodded. "We'll bring it up over dinner soon. I want to take some time to do some research about this Gensokyo first, though. Maybe I'll even see if we can get a hold of this Yakumo person."

"Well, Kanako, you know that no matter what you decide, I'll be here. I'm gonna go take a nap by the lake now, alright?"

"Certainly. Have a good rest, dear."

Suwako skipped out the back door of the shrine, leaving Kanako to think about things.

**Author's Note:**

> if you don't think suwako is a weed grandma then you're wrong


End file.
